Weekly Beer Focus - Barrel Aged Brews (1/28-2/5)

Beer and Spirits
21

Doh! I hope I am right that they are making more of this. For both our sakes. [drinkers.gif]

22

I have a few in the queue, just got to find some breathing room to drink them. Here is one…Mikkeller Black Tie - imperial stout brewed with honey and aged in scotch barrels. The honey adds a mead characteristic that goes well with the stout. If only this was aged in bourbon barrels - I am just not a scotch guy. The scotch does need to integrate a bit more, but not sure it will ever truly be in my wheelhouse. Fun to try though, and quite a heavyweight.

23

Thanks for the note on this one Scott. I have one of these from last winter that I never got to. I am a scotch guy, but really like more of the woodsy notes to show rather than boozy from the barrels.

24

Sounds nice. This makes me want to pop one of my bottles of their 14th anniversary release from last year for the focus. Thanks for the review.

25

Joe, I think patience will reward you. There is plenty of woodsy and boosy in this. If it ages anything like the Founders KBS, the boosy eventually integrates. I could see a scotch guy digging this in time.

26

Dominion Oak Barrel Stout

VERY dry & quite bitter at first. With a bit of air it mellows out a bit but there is still a noticeable brininess (sort of like an Oyster Stout). Not much vanilla or oak to speak off and really much more light-bodied than I’m used to when thinking wood-aged stout. A big pass!

27

The Temptation has been my recent fav from RRB. Just straight forward, clean and refreshing. I don’t think this one has any fruit in it. Just straight sour. Trying to keep some around for summer but I just see dead soldier after dead soldier.

J

28

At the risk of being seen as a shill for the Bruery, here is my next one:

Mother Funker - sour blonde ale aged in Chardonnay barrels.

Sour. Sour. Sour. Want anything else? Fugged about it. Want some depth or complexity? You so crazy. But even so, I still enjoyed it’s rather singular note. It is sour, citrusy, sour, a little funky with some vinegar, and a bit sour. Like I said, I did enjoy it (definitely didn’t love it) but no way could I finish the bottle. But if you want super sour, this beer is for you. Did I mention that it was sour?

And I promise my next focus beer will be from a different brewer. I just happen to have a lot of their stuff and most of it happens to be barrel aged.

29

Arcadia Barrel Aged Shipwreck Porter: Nicely done. A lot of the Goose Island Bourbon County flavors in terms of the bourbon barrel treatment…just applied to a porter. A little smoky, a little charred caramel, and a well integrated boosy flavor that wasn’t over the top. The big negative is the decision to use the Makers Mark wax seal - applying over a crown cap causes enough challenges, but using it on a beverage that needs refrigeration makes the wax harder to deal with.

I have a couple more barrel aged beers, but am not around this weekend. I will do some more next week!

30

producer is Arcadia, Scott, not Arcadian. Solid producer.

31

HA! Good catch. I was in Wine Talk before posting this…must have channeled my inner Joe Davis.

32

Williamsburg (VA) Alewerks Cafe Royale- bourbon aged coffee stout. Lots of both; don’t know if the booze will put me to sleep or the coffee will keep me awake. Overall a very rich, flavorful beer, but keeps from being great for me by being a bit flat. Not a fan when barrel aging the beer makes it loose the carbonation.

33

Firestone Walker DBA(Double Barrel Ale) - 5.0% - Subtle complex aromatics. Very fresh palate. Prominent malt flavors similar to light brown ale or a rich pale ale. Touch of bitterness on a fresh finish. A very nicely constructed beer. Classic profile. Reminds me of the Hangar 24 Alt Bier but lighter. I didn’t really notice anything I could attribute to the barrel treatment. They claim some vanilla on the label but I didn’t really get it. Damn nice beer though.

34

Sam Smith – Yorkshire Stingo
– tasted non-blind from a crown-capped 550mL bottle –
– 2011 release –

NOSE: golden raisins; dried dates; hints of wet cement and molasses.

BODY: minimal light tan head; auburn brown color of medium depth; some sediment present; medium-full bodied.

TASTE: rich and complex; sweet, but not sugary; tastes like sticky toffee pudding in beer form; hint of anise; 8% alc. is warming in the belly; light-to-moderate notes of oak — baking spices; absolutely superb. 9.5-10/10

35

Nice. I have one of these in my cellar for experimenting though I cannot remember when I placed it there.

I’m trying to skip beers I’ve already posted about here on the board for this so I passed on the Stingo on my trip to Total Wine yesterday.

36

Well said. I drank one of these at dinner last night, and much like the Oaked Arrogant Bastard from Stone, I get some barrel on the nose, but nowhere else. This is easy to drink- sessionable even, so the lack of barrels doesnt sweat me at all.

37

I’m starting to fully believe it is impossible for Sam Smith to brew a bad beer or anything that’s not a standard-bearer for its category.

Seriously, I think the Imperial Stout, Porter, Stingo, Old Brewery Pale Ale, Hefeweizen, and Oatmeal Stout are all amongst the cream of their respective crops.

38

I would add the Organic Ale to that list. Don’t think I’ve tried the Hefe. Should I bump my old thread where I asked if they were the greatest brewery? [wink.gif]

39

So, I had planned on opening a lot more barrel aged brews, but it turned out to be a wine heavy week, I finally got to pop a beer yesterday during the big game after getting home from my son’s wrestling tournament.

Brookly Black Ops - Bourbon Barrel Aged - This was all about the toasted caramel and toffee notes, huge notes of espresso coffee and a near sweet milk chocolate component. There is no bitterness whatsoever and it’s supremely quaffable, really delicious beer and one I’ll be buying again. You can smell the bourbon on the nose, no it’s not Pappy in there, but it adds a terrific aroma.

40

What’s the thought over there for these? I fully agree with you, but have heard that’s not true for UK’ers.